Landforms of South America

Beginning high in the Sierra Parima Mountains of Venezuela and Brazil, the Orinoco River flows in a giant arc before discharging into the Atlantic Ocean in Venezuela. Its tributaries are the primary transportation system for eastern and interior Venezuela and the Llanos of Colombia.

The Pacific Plate is a tectonic plate located beneath the Pacific Ocean, mainly consisting of oceanic crust. It is estimated to be the largest plate on Earth, covering around 40,000,000 square miles. This plate is a significant contributor to the Pacific Ring of Fire.

The Pantanal is a natural region encompassing the world's largest tropical wetland. This gigantic seasonal floodplain lies mainly within Mato Grosso, and Mato Grosso do Sul in the Center-West Region of Brazil. However, small portions extend into northeastern Paraguay and southeastern Bolivia.

The Paracas National Reserve is a protected area in Peru that protects desert and marine ecosystems, including the Paracas Peninsula and Paracas Bay. In addition, the Ballestas Islands are a group of small islands off the coast of the peninsula that are an essential sanctuary for marine fauna.

The Paraguay River is South America's fifth-largest river, running through Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina. From the Brazilian state of Mato Grasso to its confluence with the Paraná River in Argentina, it serves as part of the Paraguayan border with Argentina and Brazil.

The Paraná River is the second-longest river in South America. Running through Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina, it becomes an alluvial basin before emptying into the Río de la Plata. The Paraná Delta consists of several islands known as the Islas del Paraná.

Located between the Serra da Bocaina mountain range and the Atlantic Ocean, this cultural and natural landscape includes the historic center of Paraty, the island of Ilha Grande as well as four protected natural areas of the Atlantic Forest, one of the world's key biodiversity hotspots.

The Patagonian Desert, also known as the Magellanic Steppe, is a semiarid scrub plateau covering nearly all of the southern portion of mainland Argentina. It is the largest desert in Argentina and is bounded by the Patagonian Andes and the country of Chile to the west.

The Peru-Chile Trench, also known as the Atacama Trench, is an oceanic trench in the eastern Pacific Ocean off the coast of Peru and Chile. It delineates the boundary between the subducting Nazca Plate and the overriding South American Plate.

The Peruvian Andes, part of the greater Andes system of South America, are formed by three main cordilleras that traverse the entire country. The Sierra natural region features fertile river valleys, high plains, deep canyons and the Altiplano plateau.